Skip to Content
Questions or Comments: aporeg@tceq.texas.gov

Aggregate Production Operations: How to Register

Owners/operators of quarries, sand pits, gravel pits, or other aggregate production operations (APO) in Texas must register.

Who Must Register?

You must register each location where you remove or extract aggregate from the ground per Title 30 Texas Administrative Code 342 (Regulation of Certain Aggregate Production Operations) . Aggregates are any commonly recognized construction material such as dimension stone, crushed and broken limestone, crushed and broken granite, other types of crushed and broken stone, construction sand and gravel, industrial sand, dirt, soil, or caliche. Facilities that only process aggregates (aka processing plants) do not require an APO registration.

Exemptions

You do not have to register if your facility meets one of the following criteria.

  • You use all of the aggregate produced at your facility:
    • In a lime kiln that is on site or at a related site that you also control;
    • To produce cement or lightweight aggregates on site or at a related site that you also control;
    • Exclusively in a public works project of a state agency or local government;
    • As fill or for other construction purposes on site or at an adjacent site; or
    • To construct, modify, or expand a landfill or other solid waste facility.
  • The primary purpose of extracting the aggregates is not for commercial sale; or
  • You extract specialty or terrazzo-type stone that is used exclusively for decorative or artistic uses and the current production area doesn’t exceed 5 acres; or
  • You extract clay or shale for ceramic tiles, brick, or other structural clay products.

Additional Rules and Requirements

Best Management Practices (BMPs) for Sand Mining in the San Jacinto River Watershed
If you mine sand (Standard Industrial Classification codes 1442 and 1446) in the San Jacinto watershed, your facility may be subject to the new rules in 30 TAC 311 Subchapter J, adopted December 15, 2021 at the Commissioner's Agenda. Facilities affected by the rules are required to adopt BMPs and submit a final stabilization plan to TCEQ Water Quality Permitting.

APOs may require other authorizations issued by the TCEQ. If you need help understanding and complying with environmental rules, you can contact TCEQ's Small Business & Local Government Assistance (SBLGA) Program at 800-447-2827 or TexasEnviroHelp@tceq.texas.gov.

Back to the top of the page Back to top

New Registration

You must register your operation 10 business days before you begin extracting aggregates.

Back to the top of the page Back to top

Renewing Your Registration

You must renew your APO registration every year before it expires but no more than 30 days before the expiration date. Your registration certificate lists the expiration date for your registration. Alternatively, you can search to find your registration number and expiration date.

STEERS Feature: You can now submit renewals for expired, cancelled, denied, or withdrawn APO registrations via STEERS. Note that you must have an active APO registration in order to engage in aggregate production operations. You may not continue aggregate production operations when your registration is expired, cancelled, denied, or withdrawn. If you renew an expired, cancelled, denied, or withdrawn registration, the expiration date for your APO will change to one year after the renewal date.

  • If you already have a STEERS account, login and follow the instructions to add "Aggregate Production Operations Registration (EPR APO)" to your account.
  • If you don't already have a STEERS account, follow the instructions to create a STEERS account.
  • Return to STEERS Home.
  • Click the link for "Aggregate Production Operations Registration (EPR_APO)".
  • Click the button to "Fill Out" an application.
  • Click the button next to "Renew an existing Aggregate Production Operations Registration (APOREG-REN)" if the ownership for the site has not changed.
  • Click the button next to "Renew an existing APO Registration with Change of Ownership (APOREG-REN-COO)" if the ownership for the site has changed.
  • Continue through the remaining screens.
  • Follow the payment instructions in the registration fee section.
  • Make sure to complete all of the application steps, including the Submit step, to complete the application.
  • If you are unable to renew online, you can renew using the TCEQ-20634: APO Registration form ( instructions) and submit your payment online via ePay. To submit the application:
    • email the form and ePay confirmation to aporeg@tceq.texas.gov, or
    • fax the form and ePay confirmation to 512-239-6410, or
    • mail the form with ePay confirmation, check, or money order to the address listed on the form.

Back to the top of the page Back to top

Registration Fees

When you register or renew your APO, you must pay a registration fee based on the number of acres disturbed. The table below displays the fees per range of acres disturbed for an APO registration. The fee structure applies to all new and renewing APO registrations.

When you measure the area disturbed, round up to the nearest whole number and include all:

  • pits, quarried areas, and other extraction areas
  • stripped areas
  • haulage ramps
  • land used for a processing plant
Acres Disturbed Fee
0 - 10 acres $474
>10 and <= 50 acres $790
>50 and <= 100 acres $1,106
>100 acres $1,500

To use TCEQ's ePay system to pay APO fees:

  1. When you submit an application through STEERS, STEERS will direct you to TCEQ's ePay page. If you need to submit paper forms and want to pay using ePay, go to https://www3.tceq.texas.gov/epay/.
  2. On the right side of the screen on the next page, enter your name and your email and click the "OK" button.
  3. On the next page under option 3, click the link for "WATER".
  4. On the next page under "Water Quality" and then under "Registration", click the appropriate link for the number of acres disturbed.
  5. On the next page, enter the information in the required fields.
  6. In the "Program Area ID" field, enter your APO registration number or "new" if you need to obtain an APO registration.
  7. Click the "OK" button".
  8. Submit both your form and a copy of the ePay email confirmation to aporeg@tceq.texas.gov or to the address listed on the form.

If you would prefer to pay your registration fees using a check or money order, mail the check or money order to the address noted on the  TCEQ-20634: APO Registration form ( instructions).

Effective March 1, 2021, the APO annual registration fees increased to the amounts in the fee table above. There will no longer be a separate fee structure for electronic submittals via STEERS. This increase is necessary to continue to support the program.

Back to the top of the page Back to top

Updating Your Registration

Search for your registration to view the status and existing details.

Ownership Changes

If the APO site's ownership changes, transfer the existing APO registration to the new owner. There is no fee to update the ownership of an APO registration.

STEERS Feature: You can now submit ownership changes using STEERS. Select the button next to "Create an APO Registration Modification with Change of Ownership application (APOREG-MOD-COO)" in STEERS if the ownership change occurred prior to your renewal period (more than 30 days prior to your expiration date). Select the button next to "Renew an existing APO Registration with Change of Ownership (APOREG-REN-COO)" in STEERS if the ownership change occurred during your renewal period (within 30 days of your expiration).

If you are unable to use STEERS to submit the ownership change, submit the  TCEQ-20634: APO Registration form ( instructions)  to update the ownership and contact information for the registration. Email the forms to aporeg@tceq.texas.gov, fax the forms to 512-239-6410, or mail the forms to the address listed on the TCEQ-20634 .

Back to the top of the page Back to top

Mailing Address or Phone Number Changes

You must immediately inform TCEQ if your mailing address, telephone number, or other contact information changes. There is no fee for these changes.

Cancelling Your Registration

You must cancel your APO registration if the regulated aggregate extraction activities at the site have ceased or if the planned aggregate production activity will not occur as planned. You also may choose to cancel your APO registration if the ownership changes in order to prevent the new owner from conducting operations without having updated the registration. There is no fee to cancel a registration. If you need to cancel a registration within its renewal period (within 30 days of expiration), you should let the registration expire rather than submitting a cancellation application. You cannot cancel a registration within its renewal period.

If you are unable to use STEERS, you can use the Cancellation form. Email the form to aporeg@tceq.texas.gov, fax the form to 512-239-6410, or mail the form to the address listed on the form.

Back to the top of the page Back to top

Required Map Information

All APO registrants must provide accurate maps of the location of their registered operations. Include the boundaries for the entire property where the APO occurs and latitude and longitude coordinates for each pit/excavation site on your site. Indicate your APO registration number on the map you submit. For maps for new registrations, indicate “NEW” on the map you submit.  If you have multiple registrations, submit a map for each registered site.

Some options for obtaining a map to submit to TCEQ include:

  • County Appraisal District (CAD) map information: Include the county name and property ID. CAD maps provide the required property boundaries, but you must provide the pit coordinates. If your specific CAD does not have an online mapping tool, you must submit the aerial boundary map by some other means.
  • A screen shot from the TCEQ Location Mapper tool: This tool can assist with the creation of the boundary map and the latitude/longitude coordinates for each pit under your registration. Note that you cannot submit a URL for your map because a URL will not preserve the drawn boundary. You will need to take a screen shot of the map instead. TCEQ Location Mapper tool video tutorial
  • An electronic file using Geographic Information System (GIS) software such as ArcGIS, AutoCAD, or QGiS; or a KMZ or KML file from Google Earth that shows satellite imagery of the site is acceptable.

Do not send photographs of maps since photographs can distort the map image. The agency map software cannot upload distorted images of the map.

You can upload a map in STEERS as part of any new, renewal, or modification application. Alternatively, existing APO registrations can submit a map via:

  • Email to APOReg@tceq.texas.gov; or
  • Postal mail addressed to:
    TCEQ
    Registration and Reporting MC-129
    PO Box 13087
    Austin, TX 78711-3087

Back to the top of the page Back to top

Questions?

Contact the Registration and Reporting Team at 512-239-2628 or aporeg@tceq.texas.gov.

Back to the top of the page Back to top